Hypoglycemia and pregnancy?

jennicole85

I'm still really early in my pregnancy, but I was wondering...  Those that have hypoglycemia before (and during) pregnancy - what do you do to keep your blood sugar up?  Are there certain foods that I should be eating more/less of?  Do you have any other advice?

I don't have a doctor appointment for a few more weeks and have no idea.  I had it very, very under control before I was pregnant but I can already tell a difference in my blood sugar now (at only 4 weeks!).

Any help would be appreciated!  Thank you!

lildevil968

Lurking, but I also suffer from Hypoglycemia. With DD it wasn't a problem, but DS it was. One thing that really helped me is having a glass or two of OJ everyday, and a bagel. I also kept hard candies with me for the times that I felt like my blood sugar was really low.

AEN1029

I was diagnosed with hypoglycemia when I was pregnant with DD1. I always kept hard candy glucose tabs with me and I made myself eat something even when I wasn't hungry. My doctor recommended 6 small meals a day every few hours to keep my sugar balanced. Sometimes, I could feel it dropping so I would eat something or drink some soda if I was out and it would bring it back up.

kacelle

I have hypoglycemia.  When I was pregnant with DD, it actually was a lot better than pre-pregnancy because I was eating small meals so frequently to help with morning sickness.

Hailes81

I have been hypoglycemic my whole life...it can be a real pain in the @$$. With this pregnancy I have craved a lot of protein which has been helpful to keep my blood sugar in check. I eat string cheese, soup with meat in it, peanut butter, or whatever I can get my hands on with protein. In my car I have a "snack pack" which includes granola bars, turkey jerky, and nature made protein bars...keeping fed is the only way I can stay balanced. Stay away from carbs and sweets, those will spike and then drop your blood sugar, which for me makes me feel worse then before the snack.

Karen1998

lildevil968:

Lurking, but I also suffer from Hypoglycemia. With DD it wasn't a problem, but DS it was. One thing that really helped me is having a glass or two of OJ everyday, and a bagel. I also kept hard candies with me for the times that I felt like my blood sugar was really low.

This is a recipe for disaster for most hypogylcemics.  You'll shoot your sugars up and then crash even harder.  If your sugars are desperately low, then yes, a quick sugar like juice can help, but it's not a good idea to do daily consumption of such a quick sugar if you're having problems with sugar crashes.  You're just setting yourself up for worse crashes. 

I just made sure to always eat some sort of protein every few hours.  While I wasn't puking from m/s, I had a really hard time eating anything.  I forced myself to eat something every few hours so my sugars would stay level.  I don't get stupid until my sugars are dangerously low, so I had to be proactive.  Oddly enough, the only thing I could consistently eat for the first 20 weeks was Special K with Red Berries cereal with milk.  It's not an ideal protein/carb combination, but it was the best one I could get down.  So, find something that you can eat that has protein and keep that on hand.  

The hypoglycemic diet is basically the same as the diabetic diet.  Keep your carbs limited, avoid simple sugars, eat whole grain, eat every few hours, balance every meal and snack with protein, etc...  You can also ask your doctor to refer you to a nutritionist if you're struggling maintaining your sugars.  Many doctors have blood sugar monitors they'll give you for free, so it's worth asking your OB if she has one.  She may not, as they're not as common in OB offices, but it's worth asking.  She can probably write you a script for one.  I've used one in the past to make sure I was keeping my sugars on track.